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DLT Entertainment Limited
Background: DLT Entertainment Ltd. (formerly known as "D.L./Don Taffner Syndication Sales", "D.L. Taffner Entertainment", and "D.L. Taffner Productions Ltd." until 1996) is a production and distribution company which handles off-network syndicated shows into distribution. The company is best known for distributing the popular sitcom Three's Company. Also, DLT Entertainment handles other shows such as Too Close for Comfort and Three's a Crowd (a spin-off of Three's Company). Starting in the 1970s, DLT Entertainment made its way around by producing one of United Kingdom's long running sitcoms, As Time Goes By on The BBC among other UK sitcoms, such as Full House (not to be confused with the ABC hit, which is why the British series was renamed), The Benny Hill Show, and others. DLT Entertainment owns the international rights to The Adventures of Teddy Ruxpin (originally produced by DiC Entertainment and LBS Communications). Taffner also owns a British production unit, named "Theatre of Comedy Limited (Ltd.)", best known for As Time Goes By. 1st Logo (March 15, 1977-April 9, 1985) Logo: This on-screen text would usually be found at the end of a show’s closing credits. On Three’s Company and The Ropers, the following would read: A PRODUCTION OF THE NRW COMPANY IN ASSOCIATION WITH T.T.C. PRODUCTIONS, INC. However, on Too Close for Comfort, the following would read: A PRESENTATION OF D.L. TAFFNER PRODUCTIONS Except on season 1 of the show, which read: A Presentation of DON-EL PRODUCTIONS LTD. FX/SFX: Scrolls up with the credits. Music/Sounds: The closing theme of the show. Availability: Still intact, obviously, on repeats of the aforementioned shows. Scare Factor: None to minimal. It depends on what ending theme might be used (Too Close for Comfort can be the most bothersome) or what comes after, like the next logo here. 2nd Logo (1979-1994) Nicknames: “The Zooming Text", "The V of Doom-Like Logo" Logo: On a gold-orange background, resembling that of kitchen appliances back in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, the following text zooms to the center of the screen: DISTRIBUTED BY D.L. TAFFNER SYNDICATION SALES The words are in the same font used in the Three’s Company credits, and the zoom-up is a lot like the Viacom “V of Doom” logo, except you can make out sort of a rollercoaster effect (think of it as the Telepictures “Rollercoaster Shadows” logo, but upside-down without the shadows, almost) Trivia: This never appeared after Three’s Company on its original ABC run. This logo was used for syndication of that show only, like the logo suggested. Variant: The text was later placed on an orange background in 1982. FX/SFX: The zoom in. Cheesy Factor: Not only does the text look ugly, the zoom is very similar to another scary sight on local TV during the time! Music/Sounds: None. Availability: Rare. It's preserved on old prints of Three’s Company and some episodes of The Ropers on Antenna TV. It is also seen on reruns of Three's a Crowd on the same channel as well (but it is typically shown after Three's Company completes its run). Scare Factor: Medium to high barely bordering on nightmare. The silence combined with the ugly text zooming like the "V of Doom" can cause some people’s spines to tingle, but the scare factor is lower for those who are used to it. 3rd Logo (As Time Goes By 1st Variant) (1992-1996) Logo: On set with a gray background with the BBC logo of the time, and the Theatre of Comedy Ltd. in-credit notice(with theater masks as part of it's logo) after closing away from the As Time Goes By credits, we see the text reading: A THEATRE OF COMEDY PRODUCTION IN ASSOCIATION WITH D.L. TAFFNER/U.K. PRODUCTIONS LTD. FOR BBC TELEVISION Variant: On some occasions, the BBC logo of the time, is seen under D.L. Taffner's name, replacing the "BBC Television" in-credit text. FX/SFX: None. Music/Sounds: The ending theme of As Time Goes By. Availability: Seen on 1992-1996 episodes of As Time Goes By. It can be seen on PBS affiliates in the United States. Scare Factor: None. 4th Logo (As Time Goes By 2nd Variant) (1996-2005) Logo: Same as the last variant, only with a couple slight changes: the text D.L. Taffner Productions Ltd. in-credit notice is replaced by a new logo for it, reading DLT Entertainment (in the same font as the logo below), and the Theatre of Comedy Entertainment, and BBC logos are above and below it, respectively. Also, there is a "swoosh" effect for the Theatre of Comedy logo. Variant: Along with BBC's then-new, now current logo in 1997, the background was slightly changed as well. FX/SFX: The formation of the Theatre of Comedy logo. Music/Sounds: Same as the first variant. Availability: Same as the first variant. Scare Factor: Same as above. 5th Logo (1995- ) Nickname: "DLT" Logo: On a black background, we see the words “DON TAFFNER’S” with a red line above it first. Those words zoom back, as a white star appears in the middle of the screen, rotating counter-clockwise while a big red “D” comes in from the lower left corner, a big red “L” comes in from the bottom center, and a big red “T” comes in from near the upper right corner. After the “DLT” is formed, the star stops rotating, is already in the “D,” and the words “ENTERTAINMENT LTD.,” this time with the red line BELOW the words, slides in from the left at a fast pace, stopping right below the “DLT”. Variants: *There’s a short version on TV Land reruns and DVD prints of Three's Company that has the URL "www.threescompany.com" below the logo. *A longer version holds the last note of the music longer. FX/SFX: The production company name appearing, the DLT forming, the spinning star, etc. Music/Sounds: Starts with a hiss combined with a single synth note, followed by a five-note piano tune. On the short version, none. Availability: Rare. This is limited to DVD and local syndication prints of Three’s Company (and was also used on the TV Land run), although on Antenna TV the long version did appear on at least one episode. Scare Factor: Low. It's much nicer than the 2nd logo. Category:Television syndication distributors Category:Other Television Companies Category:Television production companies in the United States Category:Television Category:Nightmare Logos